Mission Foundation receives grant from EPA

Press release

From Mission Health

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 11, 2012) – Mission Health is pleased to announce its receipt of $98,563 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – one of two such grants awarded in the Southeast. The grant, which was awarded to the Mission Foundation, will support the continuation and expansion of Mission Children Hospital’s Regional Asthma Disease Management Program (RADMP).

Now in its 11th year, RADMP serves 21 western North Carolina counties through intensive disease management and a reduction in asthma triggers in the region. The program focuses on care and education for children and families, particularly the health disparities in minority children with asthma.

“As we seek to improve lives through enhanced access and affordability of quality health care, we believe the Regional Asthma Disease Management Program demonstrates measurable results for children in western North Carolina,” said Bruce Thorsen, President and CEO of the Mission Foundation. “This spring, we celebrated as the EPA honored the program with its prestigious National Environmental Leadership Award in Asthma Management and we are most excited to be able to continue and expand this outstanding program with this new grant.”

The grant, which runs Oct. 1, 2012 through Sept. 30, 2014 will award $49,282 each year to RADMP and will allow the program to employ innovative approaches to improve patient health and quality of children’s lives.

“We welcome the EPA’s grant award and look forward to continuing to advocate and care for our patients and their families,” said Melinda Shuler, regional clinical coordinator and principal investigator for RADMP. “We not only provide world-class medical care but also ensure the continuum of care extends beyond our clinical walls as we connect patients and their caregivers with community-based resources to address underserved children’s basic needs.”

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About Mission Health

Mission Health, based in Asheville, N.C., is the state’s sixth-largest health system and the region’s only not-for-profit, independent community hospital system governed and managed exclusively in western North Carolina. In 2012 Mission Health was named one of the nation’s Top 15 Health Systems by Thomson Reuters – the only health system in North Carolina to receive this recognition.

Mission Health, which traces its roots in the region back to 1885, operates five hospitals, numerous outpatient and surgery centers, and the region’s only dedicated Level II trauma center. Its medical staff consists of more than 1,000 physicians and is certified in over 50 medical specialties and sub-specialties. Mission Health has seven Centers of Excellence: Cancer, Heart, Mission Children’s Hospital, Neurosciences, Orthopedics, Trauma and Women’s Health. Mission Hospital, located in Asheville, is the system’s flagship hospital and is licensed for 730 beds. It is the regional referral center for tertiary and quaternary care and is the busiest surgical hospital in North Carolina. It also includes Mission Children’s Hospital– the region’s only children’s hospital. Other Mission Health member hospitals include Angel Medical Center in Franklin, Blue Ridge Regional Hospital in Spruce Pine, McDowell Hospital in Marion and Transylvania Regional Hospital in Brevard. With approximately 8,800 employees and 700 volunteers, Mission Health is dedicated to improving the health and wellness of the people of western North Carolina. For more information, visit Mission-Health.org.